In response to those claims, the National Center for Arts Research at Southern Methodist University (NCAR) has published a report to challenge this notion that NEA-funded art is for the wealthiest. They are super excited about what they’ve published, too. The study’s director told Art Seek that it proves that “the arts are far more democratic than they are given credit for.”

1) NEA grants do not favor arts organizations in wealthier communities; instead, funding is more often awarded to economically diverse communities [with a higher percentage of households that are wealthy and a higher percentage of households that are below the poverty line.]

2) Attendance rises with increases in the percentage of households below the poverty line, and with increases in the percentage of households with incomes above $200,000.

Alright, so those two findings need some interpretation. The first point says the NEA tends to fund activities in communities with large numbers of both rich and poor residents. In other words, these are places with a smaller middle-class. As for the second point, NEA-funded activities see higher attendance numbers in communities where such financial diversity is in place. But this type of very-rich-and-very-poor city sounds a lot like New York or any other metropolis. That’s not really big news.

What we still don’t know—and maybe this is for another report—is who’s going to those museums. College kids, gastroenterologists, factory workers, hedge-fund investors, or what? That’s what we really need to know, if we don’t want a repeat of 2013.

If you’d followed the link in the report to the story about NCAR’s earlier study, some of your questions might be answered. In particular, scroll down a bit to the bulleted points under “Other surprises.” The fact is, big cities are both very attractive to arts audiences and are a very negative influence on them, too. http://bit.ly/1auIlJ7

http://www.corinnakirsch.com/ Corinna Kirsch

That’s a great article you wrote up, and SMU’s group is doing a great job at getting to the heart of what makes art organizations tick. I’m still curious about whether they’ll eventually address just who, exactly makes up regular museum attendees, the rich or the poor?

JeromeWeeks

For that, you might want to keep up with what the Dallas Museum of Art is doing – some of the most in-depth market research of any museum in the country. http://bit.ly/MtTpes. Sorry, it’s a lengthy essay but the first one that spelled out all the thinking and ramifications of what the DMA is trying.